The following census data is not only on my 2nd great grandfather but also on my great grandfather Samuel Robert Kennedy, along with his siblings that were born before 1870. The name was spelled Kennidy on this census record.

The 10 households(neighbors) enumerated before this family with head of household listed first and the rest listed in parenthesis along with ages.

Below is the information from the 1870 Census where John Henry Kennedy was 4 and my great grandfather, Robert Samuel, was approximately 3 months old. If a line is answered with an “X” then it means that particular column on the census was checked. It also appears that a Joe South (brother to Martha J?) resided within the same home.

Name: Kennedy, John G (was spelled Kennidy)
Age at last birthday: 40
Sex: male
Race: white
Occupation: farmer
Value of Real Estate Owned: 440
Value of Personal Estate Owned: 300
Place of Birth: Alabama
Male Citizen of U.S. of 21 years of age and upwards: X

It didn’t matter whose house we all showed up to, but on Labor Day weekend each year, you could expect to see family and maybe a few “old family friends”, catch up on gossip and then go home a few pounds heavier from all the food that was brought in, satisfied and happy with the reconnection of family that weekend.

I cannot recall the very first family reunion that my family attended but over the years are many memories of seeing cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents on my mother’s side. My grandparents ended up with 8 children and by the time you got the 8 together along with their spouses and offspring, believe you me, wherever we all ended up staying, there was not a quiet moment spared. I can recall my immediate family being one of the first to arrive at my grandparents home and as the adults would catch up on family gossip, the kids were running around seeing what we could get into staying just on the edge of not getting into trouble. It seemed the family reunion was not complete until my Uncle Bob and Aunt Linda Kennedy showed up. Most of the time they were the last ones to arrive because of the long road trip from Houston, TX to Grenada, MS. There was always an air of expectancy as we watched through the windows and doors waiting for cars to pull into the driveway as different family members arrived on Labor Day Weekend. Most of the time, we would gather at my grandmother’s house and then somehow we would end up going to an aunt’s house or a community center for the big dinner that was always planned for Sunday.

One of my most cherished memories, is coming into my grandmother’s home where you would see most of the brothers and son-in-laws glued to the television over a football game or my grandfather’s favorite sport…..wrestling!! I would start down the hall to go to the bathroom and my grandmother would be standing in the hall with her finger to her mouth or grabbing me and yanking me behind her as she stood hidden next to the doorway of the bedroom which was across the hall from the bathroom. It seemed that as everything settled down the sisters would all pile up in the middle of the bed for some “girl talk”. I chuckle with merriment remembering my grandmother Lola Pearl Johnson Kennedy sneaking up to the door to listen in on the conversations of her offspring. Many, many times, she just could not help herself and would startle the sisters by poking her head around the door and yelling, “What was that??? What was that I heard you saying???”, then walking away from the bedroom with a grin like a cat who had just eaten the canary having the knowledge of what and who was being talked about among the sisters with them none the wiser.

Another memory is watching my mother and aunts sitting around a huge pile of clothes. This was the time of sharing the “hand-me-downs”. Clothes were passed from sister to sister, cousin to cousin. Most of the clothes that were passed around were ones that had been sewn at home with very few store bought articles within the mountain of clothes. Every once in a while, you could hear a sister exclaim, “OOOOH I brought this here last year!!! Who brought it back this year???” The clothes were divied up and the new “hand-me-downs” were then bagged and put into the respective cars to be taken home along with the promise of some returning again the next year to be passed down to the next person able to wear them.

Most of the time our family reunion was held in Grenada, but there were a few times, as my grandparents began to age, we would go to Coffeeville to an uncle’s home or to my Aunt Mirrell’s home in Parchman, MS for the big Sunday Potluck Dinner. Yeppers!!!! You heard me right!!! We would have our big get together at the Mississippi State Penitentary!!! Uncle Edward (Aunt Mirrell’s husband) worked at the prison and they lived in one of the houses on the compound. If you have ever read the book by John Grisham, “The Chamber” you will irrevocably get a complete, accurate description of Parchman in the opening pages. Most of the time, my aunt would have a “trustee” at the house to help cook for all the family coming in. I remember my aunt having to lock up the after shave, vanilla flavorings, mouth wash, and knives when they would come over, but as time went by she got lax in “locking up” for the guy we called “Lemon” became more like a member of the family as years passed. Lemon could cook the best steak and gravy. To this day, I can remember the flavor and tenderness as the steak fell apart with just the touch of your fork. When my grandmother arrived, among the laughter and stories and jokes, we could hear her preaching to the “trustee” fire and brimstone in hopes that she could win them to the Lord. Many years later, after Lemon was released from prison, he brought his family to visit my grandmother and to thank her for the impact she had on him turning his life around. I know there were many others that would come to help my aunt cook, but his steak and gravy will always stand out in my mind as I remember him. It also never failed that some time during these great “get-togethers” that someone would sit down to play the piano and you could hear the old southern gospel hymms being belted out as one by one of the family members would gather around to sing harmony. Many, many hours were spent around the piano, with the family musicians taking turns to play the piano for all who wanted to sing.

After my grandparents passed away, the children carried on the tradition my grandmother had started many years ago a few times. I don’t know if it was the feeling of loss with my grandparents not here, sickness within the family, or if it was just the faster paced life we all live now that basically terminated the yearly get together. It makes me wonder as to how many that remembers these family reunions miss these times like I do. Maybe this isn’t one particular physical place that I can put a finger on to describe, but it is a place in the heart of family, reunions, and friends gathering together reinforcing the strength of what family is about.

We now have what we call Kennedy Cousins Reunion, one of my cousins started many years ago, with hopes of keeping the Kennedy family together thru history, stories, and “don’t forget the food!” time in Iuka, Mississippi. This year it will be June 25, 2011 at the community center in Iuka. Be prepared to hear stories, eat good food, and just be with people who have at least one thing in common – The Kennedy Family that came to settle in east Mississippi.

Below are a few pictures of the William Dolphus and Lola Pearl (Johnson) Kennedy family reunions:

Data extracted from John Henry Kennedy’s Standard Certificate of Death

State File No 1636

1. Place of Death
County: Alcorn
City or Town: Corinth, Miss.,
Inside Corporate Limits Edgar Vot. Pre.
Hospital: None
Street No.: 1412 Allen St.
Length of Stay in this community before death: 2 Months
2.Residence before Death: Calhoun City, Calhoun County, MS
3.(A) Full Name: John Henry Kennedy
3.(B) If Veteran, name war: None
3.(C) Social Security: None
4.Sex: Male
5.Color or Race: White
6.(A) Single, widowed, married, divorced: Married
6.(B) Name of Wife: Emma Robinson Kennedy
6.(C) Age of wife if still alive: 73
7. Birth Date of Deceased: Sept.22nd,1866
8.Age: 78 Years 4 Months 14 Days
9. Birthplace: Tishomingo County, Mississippi
10. Usual occupation: Farming
11. Industry or Business: Farming
12. Father: Gipson Kennedy
13. Father’s Birthplace: D.K.
14. Mother: Martha South
15. Mother’s Birthplace: Tishomingo County, Mississippi
16. (A) Informant’s Signature: M G Kennedy
16. (B) Address: Corinth, Mississippi, #3 Son.
17. (A) Burial: Mt. Gillard Church Cemetery
17. (B) Date: 2- -45
17. (C) Place: 4 mi. E Burnsville, Tishomingo Co.
18. (A) Signature of Funeral Home director: McPeters Funeral Home
18. (B) Address: Corinth, Miss
19. (A) Date recieved local registrar: 2/17/45
19. (B) Registrar’s Signature: Mary Lee Johnson
20. Date of Death: Month: February Day: 5th
Year: 1945 Hour: 1:00 AM
21. I hereby certify that I attended the deceased from
Feb 3, 1945 to Feb 3, 1945, that I last saw him alive
on Feb 3,1945 and that death occurred on the date
and hour stated above.
Immediate cause of death: Cerebral Hemorrhage due to
Hypertension. Signature of Bernard Patrick, Corinth,
Mississippi.
Questions and things of note. I have notes but no confirmation that M G Kennedy is John Henry’s #3 son. Am I missing a child or was this M G actually, Marshall Gipson, the #2 child of John Henry? Was this a typo on the death certificate? My curiosity also has the best of me as to his places of residence. He had only been in Corinth, Alcorn County, MS for two months when he had passed; Calhoun City before that. How long had he lived in Calhoun City? Why did they move at this time in their life? If they moved to be close to a child because of being elderly and possibly sick, what child lovingly took care of their parents late in their life? Years ago, family took care of family. It was unheard of to put a family member in a nursing home, when there was family able and willing to take on the responsibility of their care. In today’s fast paced world, most have lost the essence and the importance of how love and responsibility of family goes hand in hand. One of God’s Ten Commandments was to honour thy father and mother and I often question how one can throw a parent, who spent years of devotion to rearing their children, into a nursing home and forget about them. Don’t get me wrong, for I know there are some cases where the children just are not physically or financially able to care for their parents, but you rarely see these forgetting and not visiting them in the nursing home. They stay in contact with that parent and keep a close eye on the care they are receiving. Apparently, I am going to assume this was not the case here and that John Henry and Nancy Emmaline moved close to a child who was able to lovingly take care of them until their demise. Even tho’, the children did not follow in their father’s footsteps in learning the ways of herbal medicines, they did follow his footsteps of having a big and loving heart carrying down the importance of family thru generation after generation. Now that I have been on my soapbox this morning, it’s now time to do a little bit of cleaning as I ponder the questions I have come across in this post today, that is, unless someone is willing to “lovingly” come do it for me and let me sit here and be a queen for the day!!….grins evilly as I look around for volunteers!!!

Nancy Emerline’s sister, Mary Jane “Mollie” Robinson married Samuel Robert Kennedy who was John Henry’s brother. Samuel Robert is my great grandfather. That makes these children and their children double cousins.

This week I had a comment on one of my posts with the Kennedy family and after quite a few e-mails between each other, I came to the conclusion that we were third cousins. I have a yankee cousin!!!! Who would have “thunk” it??? Yes, you heard me correctly….I said thunk and not thought. I just had to bring in a little bit of my southern roots in order to give my new found yankee cousin a laugh when she reads this. Are Southerners illiterate? In no way are we in my family. We just know how to use words and to pun them in order to get a laugh, which is why I have to tell the story of my trip into the deep Yankee lands of New York. Did I mention that we travelled thru’ Pennsylvania? Even with the beautiful scenery we passed, it too was almost as much of a culture shock as New York was to this (coughs) gentle (coughs again) southern bred child.

My sister was living on a military base in the most Northern part of New York when she became pregnant with my niece. As time got close for my niece’s big debut into this world, my mother flew to New York to be with her. The plan was for her to be there for the birth and once it happened, my father and I would drive up to see the family and to bring mother back home. Well, anyone living up North knows what kind of weather we faced in our journey when my niece was born on February 25, but we bravely packed our bags and headed into unknown lands wondering if we would safely return home unscathed. Things were going great until we reached Pennsylvania and pulled off the Interstate for fuel. We were already debating on how much further we could travel due to the blizzard that was hitting the state. Dad began to pump the gas into the car and told me to look into the glove compartment for an “ank pan”. I searched that whole car over looking for that particular item and never could find it. Grabbing my billfold, I walked into the little “rinky-dink” “mom and pop” service station/store so I could buy that “ank pan”. Up one aisle and down the other…Up the third aisle and then retraced my steps in search for my treasure with no luck of espying the one thing I wanted more than anything in the world at the moment. Finally, I gave up and walked up to the counter where this young girl was standing, waiting on customers, and chit chatting with the locals who were gathered around drinking coffee. I wasn’t sure if it was the coffee they were enjoying as much as the company of the young clerk. Maybe it was being inside where it was warm but they all definitely watched as I approached the counter and began to open my mouth to speak. I asked the girl, “Do you sell ank pans?” She said, “Do what?” I once again asked the question, “Do you sell ank pans?” Again, with a puzzled look on her face, she asked, “Do we sell what?” By this time, I was beginning to get frustrated because I knew I was speaking perfect English!!! What on earth was wrong with this kid???? Don’t she know what an “ank pan” is? Finally, I took my hand and held it like I was writing up in the air and said, “I need to buy something to write with….an “ank pan”. And with a look of surprise on her face as our “locals drinking coffee” were avidly watching the exchange, she blurts out, “OHHHHHHHHHHHHHH I thought you were needing something for the car, like a car part, you know….oil pan….ank pan….I was trying to figure out what part you needed!” By then my gentle southern ways exploded to the forefront and in my most drawled out southern voice I replied, “Wellllllll, Honeeeeeey, I am frummmmm da South. Now, Do you happen to so kindly have an “ank pan” I can buy?” By then, the locals were laughing so hard, I looked for any moment to see several just absolutely lay down on the floor and roll around. It’s amazing what one woman can get herself into over a simple ink pen and the desire of pleasing her father by providing this item so he could keep up with the gas mileage on this trip. I have had several online Pennsylvanian friends and many have wanted to call and talk with me but I warn them….”I live in Alabama and speak English, and your language is????”

The next few posts I will be concentrating on sending her information on the family, some verified, some unverified, in hopes that we get confirmation from different family members to help confirm or to give the correct information so you all will have to bear with me in my current quest to help her. The only reason I am posting the unverified information is that possibly it will give her a path she can follow in case she has not done so as of yet.

Yep, that’s right!!!! I am scratching the one side of my head that has hair because the other side of my head??? Is totally bald from pulling it out over census and birth records that I cannot find!!! Let me lay some groundwork for you….My grandfather’s name is Frank Estrada Alderete. My grandmother’s name is Helen McGlothlin. She was born in 1896 and he in 1897 possibly 1898. My father was born 18 Feb 1934. I can find my grandfather on the 1920 census in San Antonio, Bexar County, TX. Supposedly he was born in Floresville, Wilson County, TX. I have searched from 1932 all the way up thru 1940 and you will understand why in a few. I have found no birth record whatsoever of my father in these records, BUT I did find the birth record of his half cousin he was born on his birthday when he was 6. Now here’s the funny thing. Supposedly my grandfather had a half-brother and his name was Aurelio Rodriguez. The son he had on my father’s birthday was named Aurelio Alderete Jr. with the mother’s name Francisca Herrera. The weird thing is that when I looked at his birth record that was listed with the state of Texas, it has ***DO NOT ISSUE*** where the father’s name is and I know for a fact that he had other brothers and sisters. I also know he wasn’t stillborn that he died in his 40’s. I have not checked their birth records yet to see if the same thing was listed or not on the father’s name with the siblings like Aurelio Jr’s, but in time I will. This Aurelio Jr was also born in Williamson County, TX. I did find an Aurelio that was born in 1895 living with his brother on the 1900 census but my grandfather was not listed there from what I can tell. My father is very sure that Aurelio was born after his father was which does not really match up with this Aurelio on the census. Dad says that my grandfather’s mother died when my grandfather was approximately 2-3 years old. His father remarried a Rodriguez and they had Aurelio and my grandfather was supposedly born like I said earlier either in 1897 or 1898. and I want to say there were one or two more children from that union also but have no documented proof. Also on this 1900 census record is the in-laws and a daughter listed on his brother. The strange thing is the in-laws last name is Esterindo. Mighty close to Estrada isn’t it? Could over the years the names and ages etc. could have possibly gotten mixed up in passing down family history by word of mouth? I cannot find a marriage record on my grandparents either. I will be having to search at least for that between the years of 1920-1934. Now here is something else to think about. Isn’t it strange how close Wilson County and Williamson County sounds as you pronounce them? Could it possibly have been Florence, Williamson County instead of Floresville, Wilson county for his birth in 1898? And then when he became a young man he went to San Antonio where he found work and a place to lodge, which was with his employer who owned a funeral home.

I talked with a friend of mine that runs a lot of documents for a company in the state of Texas. She informed me tonight that I needed to run a trace on my grandfather’s middle name that was his mother’s maiden name. She said it is very common for the Mexican men to take on their mother’s maiden name as their last name to honor her when they get married, even tho legally they still have their father’s surname. That sometimes they would jump back and forth between the two names. I do have a newspaper clipping where my father had the Alderete surname in 1948 where his coach had listed him as one of the returning football players for the high school team. I have been told all of my life that we came from Italy to Texas but as I dig further and further into this I am beginning to wonder if we actually came from Mexico. On top of this, I think my grandmother fell out of the sky and met my grandfather for I can’t even find a trace of her either. So yeah, I have already gone half bald over this brick wall and I am now working on the other side of my head…..hey!!! don’t fuss!!! I gots to match it up…..i may walk lopsided with only half a head of hair!!! Anyone willing to help me pull the rest of my hair out??? LOL